Summary

This document provides links to news and resources related to the rebuilding of the Republican Party under new leadership for the year 2022. A new report is available as “GOP Leadership Report 2023.”

Since 2016, the Republican Party has been fully committed to Donald Trump as their spokesperson, continuing beyond the 2020 election. His brash and somewhat chaotic style of leadership evolved to define the new Republican Party, with candidates up and down the ticket following his example.

A significant base of supporters grew to support this newly reimagined political party. Business leaders have also adopted his style of management — see recent Twitter news as an example. So, that’s the backdrop and context of the past six years.

Admired by Rivals

In 2016, even as Trump was insulting his Republican rivals, they admired him for his ability to fill stadiums with enthusiastic crowds of adoring fans. Supporters and critics alike agreed on his ability to control news cycles. He seemed invincible and impervious to any scandal, creating even larger scandals, and multiple scandals to detract from the previous scandals which were quickly forgotten. His shock and awe approach to “owning the libs” involved creating multiple crisis situations that caused his opponents to scramble. He used dozens of military tactics in the social-political arena. [Source: Donald Trump’s Operational Strategy]

Slump in Sales

It’s not uncommon for organizations to enlist the help of dynamic charismatic celebrities. As long as they produce results, the spokesperson retains their position. Usually companies look for non-controversial people to represent their brand.

In the case of Trump, the controversies made him more popular among supporters. His “Glengarry Glen Ross” style of fear-based employee motivation is admired by some, but others consider it a brutalist degrading form of leadership.

The results of the mid-term elections in November 2022 seemed to indicate a decline in Trump’s ability to deliver wins for the party. That was his primary value. Without exceptional results, he’s simply a slightly off-brand ineffective spokesperson who has caused some long-time multi-generational Republicans to leave the party. That’s not a good look.

Rebuilding the Party

As of November 2022, the Republican Party has begun the process of rebuilding after a rough six years. On 14 Nov 2022, an excerpt from an interview with Mike Pence was posted to YouTube by ABC News. [View] On 20 Nov 2022, a complete 47-minute extended interview with Mike Pence was posted to YouTube by NBC News. [View] It seemed to set the stage for a GOP reset.

The Alternatives

Both dominant political parties in the United States go through the same process every four years with presidential campaigns. The campaigning begins with a dozen or more likable, competent, ethical, experienced candidates who can’t be bought by special interests.

After those initial candidates are removed from the running, the ones that remain aren’t necessarily the public’s first choice or favorite, but they are those who were ruthless and connected enough to win the initial Mad Max competition and be selected as their party’s nominee for president.

If Mike Pence, Paul Ryan, Marco Rubio, and others slip behind in the competition, the remaining candidates will be Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Steve Bannon, and probably some militant nationalist militia leaders. Do you really want to toss a coin at that point between the remaining Republican and Democratic Party candidates? From the Democrats, it won’t be AOC or Bernie Sanders running, it will be a Marxist version of AOC on meth funded by George Soros. That’s the coin toss in 2024.

It’s better to have — from both parties — the Mike Pence, Marco Rubio, and Carly Fiorina types of candidates and get them locked in and fully supported early on, before they are gone and we’re presented with what’s behind door number two.

For more about the Democratic Party leadership, read “Democratic Leadership Report 2022.”

Books

Leaders in the Republican Party have recently written books that offer a plan for rebuilding the party. Others are expected to be offering books in the months ahead.

• Mike Pence — So Help Me God
• Paul Ryan — American Renewal, A Conservative Plan to Strengthen the Social Contract and Save the Country’s Finances

News

Below are relevant news items that collectively convey the new messaging from the Republican Party going forward from November 2022. Entry headers offer the source and date for each item.

Washington Post (8 Dec 2022)

“Romney on Trump and the Republican party” — “Have some people lost their way? Yes. Are others filled with a vision for the future? Absolutely. I think we’ve got 12 people or more that would like to be president, that are thinking of running in 2024. If President Trump continues in his campaign, I’m not sure anyone of them can make it through and beat him. I think he’s got such a strong base of 30 or 40 percent of the Republican voters, maybe more. It’s going to be hard to knock him off as our nominee. If he became our nominee, I think he loses again … I voted to remove him from office twice … It’s not just because he loses … but it’s also he’s simply not a person who I want to have the reins of the government of the United States … I hope that we find someone in my party who has those qualities to lead America to a better future.” – Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) [Source]

PBS NewsHour (1 Dec 2022)

“Pence on his Jan. 6 experience, confronting Trump and how his 2024 bid would be different” — Former Vice President Mike Pence has said he’s considering running for president in 2024, but he’s been notably quiet about the events of January 6, saving his take for his newly released book, “So Help Me God.” Pence sat down with Judy Woodruff to talk about the book, his last conversation with former President Trump and why he supported legal challenges to the 2020 election. [Source]

NY Times (30 Nov 2022)

“Mike Pence on Trump, the future of the Republican party and more” — Vice President Mike Pence reflected on his time as vice president and the Trump/Pence record in conversation with Andrew Ross Sorkin of The New York Times at the 2022 DealBook conference. [Source]

NewsNation (29 Nov 2022)

“Former VP Mike Pence on Trump, China, and the future of the GOP” — Former Vice President Mike Pence discussed China, January 6 and the future of the Republican Party in a wide-ranging interview with NewsNation’s Leland Vittert. [Source]

PBS (25 Nov 2022)

“Why some Republicans are finally speaking out against Trump’s future in the party” — A rift is growing among Republicans over the party’s current and future leaders. This week, prominent members of the GOP called on the party to put former President Trump behind them after multiple election losses. Still, Trump remains popular among many in the base which will be critical to winning the presidential nomination. [Source]

ABC News Australia (24 Nov 2022)

In an ABC News Australia report on past and future elections, at 4m 49s into the video, John Barron of Planet America explains: “Grover Cleveland is the only president to suffer a defeat, stage a comeback, and serve a second non-consecutive term, and he’s also the only one to seriously try, but Cleveland wasn’t impeached twice, [didn’t] falsely claim the vote was rigged, incite a riot to overturn an election, steal secret documents, and face possible criminal inditement… so, there’s that.” [Source]

Amazon (23 Nov 2022)

As of 23 Nov 2022, So Help Me God by Mike Pence is the #1 Best Seller among books on Amazon in the category of Federal Government. It is #4 overall, beating out “Surrender” by U2 sensation, Bono, which is at #8.

CBS News (21 Nov 2022)

“Former Vice President Mike Pence on Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” — Watch the full version of an interview with Former Vice President Mike Pence that aired on Nov. 20, 2022, on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.” [Source]

MSNBC (21 Nov 2022)

“Top Republicans Speak Out Against Trump’s 2024 Run” — Republicans like Paul Ryan, Mike Pompeo and New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu are speaking out against former President Trump’s run for the White House in 2024. Is it too little too late? The Morning Joe panel discusses. [Source]

ABC News (20 Nov 2022)

“‘We stick with Trump, we keep losing elections’: Former House Speaker Paul Ryan” — ABC News’ Jonathan Karl interviews former House Speaker Paul Ryan on “This Week.” [Source]

Additional companion report: “Former Speaker Paul Ryan calls himself a ‘Never-Again-Trumper'” — ABC News, Lauren Lantry, 20 Nov 2022 at 9:39 AM.

• Excerpt: “I’m proud of the accomplishments [during the Trump administration] — of the tax reform, the deregulation and criminal justice reform — I’m really excited about the judges we got on the bench, not just the Supreme Court, but throughout the judiciary,” Ryan told ABC News’ chief Washington correspondent and “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl in an exclusive interview that aired Sunday. “But I am a Never-Again-Trumper. Why? Because I want to win, and we lose with Trump. It was really clear to us in ’18, in ’20 and now in 2022.” While Republicans secured the House with a razor-thin majority, they failed to flip the Senate. The “red wave” that was widely predicted this midterm season did not come to pass. Ryan put the blame directly on the former president. [Source]

NBC News (20 Nov 2022)

“Meet The Press Full Broadcast — Nov. 20” — In a wide-ranging interview with Meet the Press, former Vice President Mike Pence addresses his break away from former President Donald Trump after the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol, his thoughts on Attorney General Merrick Garland and the Department of Justice, the reversal of Roe v. Wade, the Biden administration’s Covid response and more. Peter Baker, Brendan Buck, Kimberly Atkins Stohr and Anna Palmer join the Meet the Press roundtable. [Source]

“Full Pence: ‘Possessing Classified Documents In An Unprotected Area Is Not Proper’” — In a wide-ranging interview with Meet the Press, former Vice President Mike Pence addresses his break away from former President Donald Trump after the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol, his thoughts on Attorney General Merrick Garland and the Department of Justice, the reversal of Roe v. Wade, the Biden administration’s Covid response and more. [Source]

TODAY (20 Nov 2022)

“Mike Pence Will ‘Likely’ Run For President, Chuck Todd Says” — “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd joins Willie Geist on Sunday TODAY to discuss his interview with former Vice President Mike Pence and his “likely” 2024 presidential run. Todd says Pence goes a long way in trying to distance himself from Donald Trump. [Source]

PBS (18 Nov 2022)

“William Barr on Firing Line with Margaret Hoover” — Former Attorney General William Barr denounces Trump’s 2024 bid and says his ex-boss should step aside. Barr discusses his high-profile resignation from the Trump administration, the state of the DOJ, and the current investigations of Trump. [Source]

CNN (16 Nov 2022)

“Pence explains why he and Trump have ‘gone separate ways'” — Former Vice President Mike Pence shares a conversation he had with former President Donald Trump that led Pence to determine it was time to go their separate ways. [Source]

In the video below, also from CNN on 16 Nov, it is reported that “former allies, donors distance themselves as Trump launches third campaign.”

The Aspen Institute (27 Jun 2019)

“The Future of the Republican Party” — The right today looks different from the right during the era of George W. Bush. Today, the party has more members who consider themselves nationalist, populist, anti-immigration, anti-globalization, an anti-elite among their ilk. Many are less concerned with deficits and smaller government and more worried about a cultural decline in America. Many are frustrated by a country driven by coastal elites that ignore, if not disrespect, those in the heartland. Are these feelings reshaping the Republican narrative? What do they say about the future of the party? Karl Rove, former deputy chief of staff and senior advisor to President George W. Bush, shares insights with National Review editor in chief, Rich Lowry. This conversation was recorded during the 2019 Aspen Ideas Festival in Aspen, Colorado. The week-long event is presented by the Aspen Institute in partnership with The Atlantic. Prominent leaders and thinkers across business, politics, media, culture, science, and more participate in hundreds of panels, interviews, presentations, and screenings. [Source]